What's the best option for water for tea in the office?
When making tea at home, I have all the equipment I need to make a fine cup of tea. In the office, however, my options are more limited. It seems my sources for hot water are:
- Straight from the tap
- From the "hot" dispenser on the water cooler
- Microwave in styrofoam
- A Keurig without a K-cup
- A hot water/coffee dispenser (don't know how to describe this--looks a bit like the commercial milk dispensers you sometimes find in cafeterias)
My criteria for evaluating these sources would be:
- Purity
- Temperature
- Dissolved Oxygen
Oh, and one of the pieces of equipment that I lack is a thermometer.
A couple of observations
- Though there is no shortage of oxygen, the tap was right out for purity and temperature.
- I tried using the water cooler's hot tap for a while, but, based on dead reckoning, it just doesn't seem hot enough.
- I've heard that you're supposed to leave styrofoam out of the microwave, so I've skipped over that so far. Perhaps that is good material for a follow-up question. I suppose I could get it as hot as I want, and lose no more oxygen than would be expected at that temperature.
- The Keurig is what I've been using most recently, which seems closer than the water cooler, but the machine itself claims to max out at 192 F, and I'd prefer something a bit hotter if possible. Additionally, the method the coffee maker uses to heat the water makes me wonder if any dissolved oxygen is driven off in the process.
- Lastly the water/coffee dispenser. These are huge commercial coffee makers, essentially, and one of them simply doesn't get coffee grounds added. They've got to be at least five gallons each, and I doubt they're refilled until they're used up. I imagine a water line runs straight to the machine, but, clearly, there is a lot of speculation here. This is also the one method that I would have to pay for, which I'd be willing to do, but only if this source is better than the rest. It's also farthest from my desk.
So, what's the best option I have for a good cup of tea in the office?
Best Answer
Either buy a cheap electric kettle, or if you are really fussed about not re-boiling water then shell out a bit more for one of the single cup hot water dispensers like the Tefal Quick Cup or the Breville Hot Cup.
We have both a cheap kettle and a Breville Hot Cup in our office. The kettle is good for making cups for multiple people at the same time, the Hot Cup is good for a single person.
Pictures about "What's the best option for water for tea in the office?"
Quick Answer about "What's the best option for water for tea in the office?"
A hot water dispenser is frequently found on coffee machines, and those work very nicely for green tea since they are usually a bit cooler than boiling. It would be nice to have boiling water for black tea, but honestly, I would use one of these dispensers without hesitation for any kind of tea.How do you make office tea?
Any stove-safe vessel, whether a sauce pot or whistling kettle, can hold water to be heated, and the direct heat of a gas flame heats water quickly and evenly. Whether in a home kitchen or over a propane-powered camp stove, a gas flame is a reliable way to heat water.What is the best way to heat water for tea?
A hot water dispenser will not only store water for you but keep it hot and ready to go. If you decide to go ahead and buy one of these, you'll find that having hot water at the ready for tea or coffee is a lifesaver.Can you use a water dispenser for tea?
Only boiling water can extract the full flavor and benefit from the leaves. Use one teaspoonful of tea or one tea bag per cup (about 5 or 6 ounces) of water. Pour boiling water over the tea.what. (Bo Burnham FULL SHOW HD)
More answers regarding what's the best option for water for tea in the office?
Answer 2
If purity is top priority I can only recommend an 18 Mega Ohm laboratory purifier, complete with biofilters and UV. I assure you, you've never tasted anything like it.
In fact you can't taste anything at all, it's quite a bizarre experience to drink.
If they are so awkward as to not let you install one in the office then you might have to bring the water in from home in a clean teflon flask.
Don't go anywhere near an electric kettle! the impurities introduced but such a brutal apparatus would defy your investment in purity. I wouldn't really recommend the microwave either because you can easily super heat the water because the boiling has no impurities to seed it. A clean spherical flask over a non sooty flame is the best option really.
Add hydrogen peroxide (introduce oxygen) to taste. Again this must be of a high purity, hair bleach really won't cut it and is likely to introduce adverse health effects. I can't advise on the optimum amount however, but you may find it to have a dramatic effect at higher levels. ;-)
Answer 3
Unless you hot-desk (and even then, with a bit more effort) it should be possible to take your own mug to the office and use that to microwave instead of a styrofoam cup. Note that it's worth being a bit cautious when adding anything to water microwaved to boiling point - I would use a spoon to insert the tea without putting your hand or face above the mug.
Answer 4
You could use the Turkish/Persian method of making tea.
You make a very very strong tea at home, and boil it down until you basically have a thick liquid tea syrup. At work, you pour some of this tea syrup in your cup and add hot water. Since all the flavour has already been extracted, temperature/oxygenation only need to be good enough for drinking, not for steeping.
There's a word for this process, but I can't seem to dredge it out of my mind today.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Following NYC, Monstera, NIKOLAY OSMACHKO, Igor Starkov